St Andrew's Church, Brunei

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 11 : SAC and the ministries A. Devotion - Isaiah 6:8 God does not force His will upon His children. Isaiah's response to God from a place of guilt, shame and condemnation, reflects a heart broken and contrite for sin, fully yielded to its Creator. Once again it once again debunks every myth long held by humanity that only those considered perfect by worldly standards stand approved by God too. Our God who is no respecter of persons, sees in Isaiah far more worth than he sees in himself. Oftentimes we spend so much of life pursing our self-worth in accolades and the validation of man, whereas the pursuit of God and His righteousness only carry eternal significance. Only an encounter with the Most High and the revealing knowledge of His all-encompassing love restores you and me to what God originally intended for us to be. We serve an infinite God, whose ways are not our ways and whose eyes roam the earth searching for those faithful to His cause. May

Hi Church, here is the sermon for today.

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 10 : SAC and the ministries A. Devotion - Chronicles 29:11 "My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him and that you should minister to Him and burn incense." And this story is about a young king, only 25 years of age, King Hezekiah and the task laid before him and the choice laid in front of him (God never violates the free will He has given to us). It was a dark period is history. King Hezekiah's father, King Ahaz, decided to take Israel out from God. He worshipped other gods. Israel was gripped by wickedness, King Ahaz made an unholy alliance with the Assyrians who in turn betrayed Israel but when young 25 year old Hezekiah took over, a young lad of 25, he made a choice not to follow his father's footsteps. Instead, King Hezekiah made his choice to bring the nation back to the one true God. And He set to put the House of God in order, to declutter Israel out of darkness, called the

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 9 : SAC and the Leadership A. Devotion - Exodus 18:21 Dwight Lyman Moody, an American evangelist, once said "it is better to set a hundred men to work than to do the work of a hundred men". No one leader can alone lead and manage a church. Effective delegation through appointments of able and Godly individuals is itself the exercise of leadership, not the abandoning of it. This is the advice that Jethro, Moses's father-in-law, offered to him whilst he was leading the Israelites in Exodus. It is inasmuch the responsibility of the leader who makes the appointment and the individuals appointed by that leader to honour and accept the delegation by faith in Christ. St Andrew's Church exemplifies leadership following Jethro's advice - there are elders, adult, youth and even children led leaders who are actively present in weekly sermons, foundational class, cell group meetings and even in their daily interaction within the congregation. M

  21 Days Fast & Pray : Day 8 - The Diocese, Bishop and Clergies A. Devotion - 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 The child of God needs the church family if he is to grow, develop his gifts and to serve God. The church is a family, each member born by the spirit of God and possesses God's nature (1 Peter 1:22-25). God has ordained leadership for the church - just as the flock needs a shepherd so the family needs a leader (1 Peter 5:1-5). Christ as Head of church has given gifts to people and given these people to church to exercise His will (Eph 4:7-16) What responsibilities have the believers towards their spiritual leaders? Accept them. As they follow the Lord, we must follow them and we should accept them in the Lord. Appreciate them. Know then who labour among you (1 Thess 5:12). Spiritual leadership is a given responsibility and a difficult task for which church family should not take leaders for granted but pray for them, work with them and encourage them. The burdens are many bu

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 7 : The Great Commission A. Devotion - John 4:35-38 There is no better example in Scripture than Jesus when we think of reaching souls who have yet to know our Father. When we read the Gospels, there is no denying that our Saviour was single minded in His mission on earth. In today's reading taken from John 4, we see Jesus talking to the Samaritan woman. She was surprised that a Jew would talk to her. However, Jesus knew that He needed to talk to her in order "to do the will of Him who sent me". I am sure we have asked ourselves the common question, "What is God's will for my life?" We struggle to comprehend what God wants us to do and where He wants us to go. After Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, the disciples found Jesus and they urged Him to eat. Jesus answered them simply: "My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work." Jesus went on to say that the fields "are ripe for

21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 6 : Building Strong Family Values A. Devotion - Colossians 2:8 Today's family is under fire. Christian values have taken a back seat because the fear of God is fast disappearing. Paul writes that we need to be aware of deceptive philosophy, human traditions and elemental spiritual forces of the world. There are many systems, beliefs, and ways of thinking in our world that are hollow and deceptive. These false beliefs are focused on everything except Christ. Slowly, deceptive values are taking hold of families, including Christian families. They may sound good, they may be followed widely, but they are mental detours that lead many people astray. We are to be "...looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith." We must focus again and again upon who He is, in order that our minds and hearts are both protected against the assault of evil teaching. Parents and guardians should take the lead to guide children to Christ. Reading the word

21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 5 : Family - Altar, reconciliation and transformation A. Devotion - Deuteronomy 6:4-7 Have you ever heard of this phrase, "Charity begins at home"? It is often misinterpreted as taking care of the needs of your family before taking care of others. However, what it really means is that children learn how to be giving and generous if they have parents at home who model generosity and the spirit of giving. Similarly, we can say, "Worship begins at home." What do you think this means? In Deuteronomy 6, we are reminded as parents, to establish our family in the Christian faith, build up our personal conviction and teach sound doctrine to our children. We build a family altar by reading God's word, praying and worshipping God together as a family. Children do not automatically grow up and become "good Christians". They need to see their parents "walk the walk and talk the talk." How we live our lives becomes the model

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 4 : Family - Salvation, Protection & Provision A. Devotion Acts 16:25-33 Salvation is individual and a family is made up of individuals who live together. God instituted a family and it brings Him great joy when we worship Him, honour Him and bring glory to His name as a family. Salvation is important because, when God's Spirit dwells in us, we can walk in the mind of Christ every day. Let's see how it worked for Paul and Silas in Acts Chapter 16. Paul and Silas was in jail, yet they were singing praises through songs and hymns. Then there was a violent earthquake that shook the foundation of the prison (Acts 16:25). In the midst of difficult circumstances, Paul and Silas were singing praises and giving thanks to God. How was this possible? It was because of this powerful spirit in them. This made an impact on the jailor, who witnessed how the Lord saved them from the chains of prison. The jailer sought to be connected to this same joy and pe

Good Afternoon Church, here is the recording of the 2nd service sermon.

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 3 : Personal Commitment A. Devotion - 1 Kings:8-16 Until today, King Solomon the son and successor of King David, is known for his wisdom. Yet, in this chapter of 1 Kings, we see a king that is more than just wise. Solomon here has just completed the building of the temple of God and immediately, he dedicates it to the Lord. In his prayer, Solomon begins with adoration unto the Lord, thanking Him for all He has done and towards the end, also prays that he and the people of Israel would be committed to the Lord. In that, we see the heart of Solomon. Much like his father, he was one completely devoted to the Lord. The king could have taken pride in the completion of the temple. He could have led a celebration to draw attention to his achievement. But it would not do for Solomon to attribute such success to anything or anyone but God. Not only that, but it also would not do for him to have the Israelites set their hearts elsewhere. 2 Chronicles 1 opens tell

  21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 2 : Personal Surrender A. Devotion - Titus 3:3-7 Paul's letter to Titus emphasizes that we all need a Saviour; for we ourselves were once foolish and disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another (Titus 3:3), and a Saviour is exactly what God provided. But God's acceptance of us is based not on our works but on faith in Christ's work. When we first become a Christian, we consider the question, "will you invite Jesus into your life?' But years later we come to a realisation that actually, we were the ones saved and He has invited us into His house. Often during our walk with God, we think that Jesus did His part on the cross, now we are supposed to do our part. He died for us, now we should live for Him. Our call can be so much greater than that. Jesus did not only die for us, but He also rose again. His resurrection life and power are now

21 Days Fast & Pray - Day 1 : Personal Confession and Affirmations in Christ A. Devotion - Psalm 51:10 David's mind was a devastating maelstrom of remorse and self-disgust. The prophet Nathan had looked at him square in the face and pronounced the evil that David had committed - he had slept with another man's wife, and then sent her husband to his death (2 Samuel 11). How could he, an adulterous murderer, continue being king? how could he ever stand before the Lord and show his face again? And yet, all was not lost. Nathan said to David, "The Lord has put away your sin" (2 Samuel 12:13). However, now we are faced with a new dilemma. How could God ever pass over David's awful sins? The answer is clear to us - his terrible sins would be covered by the blood of the coming Christ, who wouldn't be born for over 40 more generations. Although the amazing truth of the Gospel may not have been immediately apparent to David at the time, what was clear to him was th

  20 Aug 2020 - Isaiah 30 TRUST HIS DIRECTIONS Isaiah begins his woe by criticizing the people (Israelites) for making plans that are not in line with God’s plans. He calls them tenacious, disobedient children for doing this. Rather than relying on God who has promised to deliver them, they are turning to Egypt for an alliance to save them from Assyria. Vs 2: “Who set out to go down to Egypt without asking for my direction.” They refuse to trust God’s plans and stop looking for the direction of God. God assured them that He would deliver them but out of unbelief they are making their own plans. The people fail to understand that relying on people brings dishonor and no help at all. Vs 9-10 These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions. Leave this way, get off this path, and stop confronting us Not only are they unwilling to listen to God’s instruction but demand to hear only t

1 Kings 8:1-21 17th March 2020 was a momentous day for Bruneians.  The long-awaited Temburong bridge meant that finally people in the remotest district could access Bandar and vice versa.  Families could visit each other without the complications of arranging boat rides or border crossings; people could access services and shops in Bandar; and of course Temburong’s tourism has benefited significantly.  The plans were in the making for years and we have been blessed to see them fulfilled.   On a grander and more significant scale was the day described in 1 Kings 8:1-21 - the ark being placed in the temple.  What a day for Israel!  It must have felt like an impossible dream finally becoming a reality!  A day of elation and celebration.  In verse 11 we read that the glory of God so filled the temple that the priests could not perform their service.  Imagine experiencing that presence!  But this day had been in the making long before Solomon was king.  This was the result of his father, Da

Devotion for 15 August, Sat Perfect Peace In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks. Open the gates, That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, For in YAH, the Lord , is everlasting strength. (Isaiah 26:1‭-‬4) We have heard of the term 'perfect storm'. Here Isaiah speaks of the opposite, 'perfect peace.' The Hebrew word for "peace" (shalom) means more than a cessation of war. It includes blessings such as wholeness, health, quietness of soul, preservation, and completeness. "What is your peace?" is the way Jews often greet one another, and Isaiah's reply would be, "My peace is from the Lord for I trust wholly in him!" (Warren W. Wiersbe) Indeed the first step to perfect peace is trusting God. It comes from an intim

Devotion 13 August 2020 - Psalm 68 This Psalm is from King David as he celebrates God’s continued care and protection over Israel and he praises God for giving them victory over their enemies. David recalled how God led them through the wilderness into their inheritance. The Israelites were burdened and struggled but God brought them out to freedom. David recognized that God was always in control and God kept his promises to His people. Sometimes it can be quite difficult to understand that the Almighty God, creator of heavens and earth would care and love us so much. Why would such a powerful God want to hear from us? Be in constant communion with us? Desire a relationship with us? Why would such a powerful God- who can control the wind and the storms allow us to call him Abba, Father? Yes, that is what the Bible is telling us and that is precisely what Psalm 68 is telling us. He is a father to the fatherless and a defender of widows. He daily bears our burdens (v.19) and he is a

Daily Devotion 11 August Isaiah 22 ARROGANCE AND UNREPENTANCE WILL LEAD TO DESTRUCTION Isaiah delivers a prophecy of destruction to the people of Jerusalem in this chapter. God was angry with the disobedience and sin of the people of Jerusalem. He warned them, through Isaiah, that their enemies would invade and destroy them (v5-7). The people of Jerusalem tried to prepare themselves for this by collecting weapons, storing water and strengthening their walls (v9-10), but they did not to look to God for help (v11). They failed to understand that this destruction was planned by God, as a result of their unrepentance. In giving the people this warning, God gave them the opportunity to repent and to show remorse for what they had done (v12). Unfortunately, they decided to carry on doing what they liked, as though there would be no time of accountability. Their reply to Isaiah was,” Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (v13). They were shameless in their unrepentance and th

God commands Isaiah to take off his clothes and sandals! Isaiah was already wearing sackcloth. Sackcloth as the name suggests, was the cloth used in making sacks. When ancient Israelis mourned, it was traditional for them to put on sackcloth and cover themselves in ashes as a sign of mourning and sometimes repentance. Some commentators like Matthew Henry seemed to believe that sackcloth was almost a uniform for Old Testament prophets. It may have symbolised the hard life of the calling to the office of Old Testament Prophet. In verse 2 God commands Isaiah to take off his clothes and sandals and go about barefoot and naked. “Really God?” Isaiah might have thought, although Scripture is silent on this point. Was Isaiah really naked for 3 years? Why would God command such a thing? What on earth is going on? Isaiah may not have been completely without clothes, but likely wore undergarments. Even with undergarments, this was likely to be a powerful visual statement backing up the prop